Getting injured is never something you plan for and the road to recovery can often times feel slow. When it comes to arm and elbow fractures, the treatment often involved bulky and stiff casts that can make it harder for patients to rehab. Now, a new stabilizing implant is available to help protect the ligaments and bones of the healing joint and get patients on the road to recovery faster.
They say behind every bad injury is a good story.
“Well, I mean, falling off a cliff is a pretty fun story!” joked Clayton Taylor.
His fall from a cliffside at Palisades State Park was just a few feet, but for Clayton, the damage was done.
“I had a complex dislocation of my left elbow,” said Taylor.
That was just the start. Clayton's X-ray showed multiple fractures in both his elbow and wrist.
“Well, a terrible triad injury is what we call it, and it's kind of a historic name. It just kind of indicates that these didn't do so well, when you saw that constellation of findings with the elbow dislocation, the coronoid fracture, and the radial head fracture, those are stabilizing components of the elbow. The way that I addressed that is by fixing the scaphoid fracture in the wrist first, stabilizing that. Once we got that out of the way, then we went to the elbow,” said Razvan Nicolescu, MD, an orthopedic surgeon with Avera Orthopedics.
In that surgery, Dr. Nicolescu was able to use a new stabilizing implant to help protect the ligaments and bones of the healing elbow joint.
“One of the game changers with these elbow injuries has become the ability to provide early stabilization with this implant that basically restores that stability and allows the elbow to begin moving right away,” said Dr. Nicolescu.
Meaning Clayton could start rehabbing from the injury on a quicker timeline, and under the watchful eye of certified hand therapists, he can push himself safely.
“Stephan has been truly amazing,” said Taylor.
“We’ve been working on just trying to progress treatments and rehab. We’re looking at swelling, scar and soft tissue, his mobility and his range of motion in the elbow and forearm,” said Stephan Kulzer, a certified hand therapist and occupational therapist with Avera Therapy.
“It's so strange for it to not be within that normal range that I've had my entire life, and just trying to build it back up. I'm sure Nicolescu hears that a lot, and the physical therapist hears that a lot. It's really his job to hear that!” laughed Taylor.
“With him having a significant injury at that elbow, but then also with his wrist being involved, it can slow things a little bit, because we have to pay attention to the healing. We can still focus on that range of motion, which is ultimately really what we need to get back. For him to have more success for daily activities, work activities, those kinds of things again,” said Kulzer.
The surgery may reset the bones and ligaments, but it's the collaboration with therapy that's paramount to patient success and their goal of returning to life without stiff and achy joints.
“Probably 80% of the surgeries I do require the assistance of our great hand therapist downstairs, and it's definitely a team approach. I mean, you can't do this in a vacuum. It's really with our PAs, our nurses, the therapists, the OR staff. Really everyone is a vital piece,” said Dr. Nicolescu.
That includes patients, and for Clayton, well, he's definitely got the right attitude.
“I know it's just going to take time and a lot of consistent work, but I certainly have hope to get back to full range motion within the next few months,” said Taylor.
“Hopefully back to regular life and nothing perilous like the rock climbing. That'll be up to him. Our goal is to get him back to whatever he'd like to get back to,” laughed Dr. Nicolescu.
“The same sort of mentality that I live with is what happened, happened and there's always tomorrow. So I'm just looking forward to that little bit of progress I make today and the baby steps working up to back to full range,” said Taylor.
June is Hand Therapy Month and it’s a good reminder to not take for granted the many functions our hands perform. Avera proudly boast the largest number of certified hand therapists in the region ready to help patients regain strength and mobility.
Learn more about orthopedic and therapy services.
